Spain as a gateway to Europe: smuggling risks involving Latin American trade flows

Juan Palomino Segura
Pérez-Llorca, Madrid
jpalomino@perezllorca.com

Guillermo Meilán Iglesias
Pérez-Llorca, Madrid
gmeilan@perezllorca.com

Spain occupies a distinctive position in regard to the trade between Latin America and Europe. It is not merely a relevant partner for Spanish-speaking countries, but, in many cases, it also serves as the natural gateway for goods entering the European Union from the region. This role, shaped by historical, logistical and economic factors, has a direct consequence: it places Spain at the forefront of administrative and criminal enforcement involving international trade with Latin America.

According to the Spanish Ministry of Economy’s Monthly Foreign Trade Report (Informe Mensual de Comercio Exterior), imports of goods from Latin America exceeded €24.687bn in 2024, accounting for 5.8 per cent of Spain’s total imports.[1] When set against the total volume of Latin American imports into the EU during the same period (€125.969bn, according to data from the European Commission’s Directorate General for Trade and Economic Security, based on Eurostat data[2]), Spain accounted for approximately 19.6 per cent of such imports. In other words, nearly one-fifth of the EU’s imports from Latin America entered the Union through Spain.

Its strategic position makes Spain a key point of enforcement from a customs and tax enforcement perspective, especially considering that 76 per cent of imported goods enter the country by sea, according to the Spanish State Ports Authority (Puertos del Estado).[3] This concentration of trade through large-scale logistical flows has a clear enforcement implication: the same channels that facilitate the mass movement of lawful goods may also be used to introduce illicit goods or to carry out irregularities through international trade.

Against this backdrop, the steady strengthening of import control mechanisms in Spain has resulted in increased criminal enforcement, with a growing number of investigations linked to import operations. In practice, these investigations tend to fall into two main categories: drug trafficking and smuggling.

With regard to drug trafficking offences, 22,731 criminal incidents were recorded in Spain in 2025, according to data from the Secretary of State for Security, representing a 5.5 per cent increase compared to the previous year.[4] This trend is consistent with Spain’s role as one of the primary entry points for cocaine into Europe. As noted in the European Drug Report 2025, published by the European Union Drugs Agency (EUDA), Spain is ranked as the second highest EU Member State in terms of cocaine seizures and, together with Belgium and the Netherlands, accounts for 72 per cent of the total.[5]

However, due to its severity and visibility, drug trafficking often overshadows another, less conspicuous, but equally relevant, issue in the context of international trade: smuggling. According to data from the Spanish Tax Agency, nearly 1,500 individuals were arrested in connection with smuggling and money laundering offences in 2024,[6] underscoring the practical significance of this risk in regard to the international movement of goods.

Why is smuggling relevant to import transactions?

Unlike other offences, such as drug trafficking, under Spanish law smuggling may be committed even where the goods involved are entirely lawful, provided that the applicable administrative requirements are breached and certain value thresholds are exceeded. Notably, this offence is not regulated within the Spanish Criminal Code but in a separate statute (Organic Law 12/1995 of 12 December, on the Suppression of Smuggling).

This legal framework has two particularly relevant features in the context of international trade. First, it requires the interpretation and application of non-criminal customs and administrative rules in order to determine the scope of criminal liability. Secondly, it may also give rise to corporate criminal liability, irrespective of the criminal liability of the individuals acting on behalf of the company and for its benefit.

Under Spanish law, smuggling offences are structured around three monetary thresholds: €150,000, €50,000 and €15,000 (the latter applying only to tobacco products). Conduct falling below these thresholds constitutes an administrative infringement rather than a criminal offence.

Spanish smuggling legislation applies to a wide range of goods, including prohibited items, products subject to trade policy controls and, most importantly, lawful goods whose importation fails to comply with the applicable administrative requirements. Within this category, the following types of conduct are particularly relevant under Articles 2.1 and 2.2 of Organic Law 12/1995:

• importing or exporting lawful goods without presenting them for customs clearance, where their value is equal to or exceeds €150,000;
• carrying out transactions involving non-EU lawful goods without being able to demonstrate their lawful importation, where their value is equal to or exceeds €150,000;
• importing or exporting goods subject to trade policy measures without complying with the applicable legal requirements, including cases where prior administrative authorisation has been obtained on the basis of false information relating to the nature or final destination of the goods, or by any other unlawful means, where their value is equal to or exceeds €150,000; and
• falsely representing circumstances in order to unlawfully obtain, or attempt to obtain, the release of goods by customs authorities, where their value is equal to or exceeds €50,000.

The significance of this offence is further heightened by the fact that criminal intent is not always required. Gross negligence may suffice for criminal liability to arise, thereby significantly increasing the risk of exposure to criminal investigations.

Conclusion

Trade between Latin America and Europe is expected to continue expanding, and Spain will remain a key gateway for goods entering the EU market. However, its role entails not only logistical and economic advantages, but also heightened exposure to administrative and criminal scrutiny.

In this context, smuggling should not be seen as an external anomaly to international trade, but rather as a risk embedded within its normal operations. The complexity of the regulatory framework, the scale of logistical flows and the involvement of multiple actors make compliance a critical component of international trade.

Accordingly, in jurisdictions such as Spain, the line between a legitimate transaction and a criminal investigation does not necessarily depend on the nature of the goods, but on how the import process is structured and executed. It is precisely at this point, namely compliance with the relevant administrative requirements, that criminal law assumes a decisive role as a key mechanism in the regulation of international trade.